China's death toll from tropical storm Prapiroon rose to 77 on Sunday, with another two people missing in the southern Guangdong Province and neighboring Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region despite the relocation of more than 660,000 people to safe areas.

 

The department of civil affairs in Guangxi said on Sunday night the regional death toll was 26 while two others were still missing.

 

About 5.1 million people in Guangxi have been affected by the disasters triggered by Prapiroon, which has destroyed 9,300 homes and damaged about 20,000 hectares of cropland.

 

A flash flood occurred at a private forest farm in Fenghuang Township of Laibin City at 3:20 AM on Saturday, sweeping away 13 migrant workers who were working on the farm.

 

The rescuers saved only six of them and found six corpses. One more migrant worker is still missing.

 

Three people were killed and one more injured in a landslide that happened in Luming Village of Hengzhou Township, Hengxian County at 7:00 AM on Saturday as one side of a civilian house fell, burying a family of four.

 

The three killed were all female. And the injured is the only man in the family.

 

The Guangdong flood control department said on Sunday evening that since Prapiroon made landfall between the province's Yangxi County and Dianbai County at 7:20 PM on Thursday, 51 people had died in the province.

 

Nine of the victims died in a tornado triggered by Prapiroon.

 

The typhoon has caused damage worth 5.4 billion yuan (US$675 million) in the province.

 

Prapiroon, which means Rain God in Thai, formed in the South China Sea and strengthened into a typhoon on Wednesday noon.

 

It is the sixth typhoon this year and also the third which has led to huge casualties in China.

 

The fifth typhoon, Kaemi, in late July claimed 35 lives, including six at a military barracks in east China's Jiangxi Province.

 

The fourth typhoon, Bilis, lashed south and east China and claimed 612 lives in southern China in mid July.

 

(Xinhua News Agency August 7, 2006)